Keeping the idea front and center is the MISTAKE - keeping the CUSTOMER front and center is the right move. :)
-Alex On Wednesday, October 14, 2015, Geoffrey Badner <[email protected]> wrote: > Alex, > Thanks for all this. I've definitely already thought through many of the > points you bring up and I think that I instinctively know that keeping the > idea front and center is the right move. > > .g > > On Tuesday, October 13, 2015 at 10:48:15 AM UTC-4, Alex Hillman wrote: >> >> Option #2 "feels" better to me because that was my original idea. >> >> >> That was my hunch :) >> >> Two warnings: >> >> 1 - Coworking as a way to subsidize the cost of a space you'd like to >> have but can't afford, more often than not, ends up with you taking on even >> MORE space than you need and then being financially responsible for it. >> Worse...this ends up not being treated like a business because it's not >> your primary business. >> >> You don't have to make a coworking space your ONLY business if you don't >> want to, but I'd caution you from thinking that you can just pop up a space >> and run it on the side *indefinitely*. >> >> 2 - Be careful of letting yourself become a slave to an "idea" instead of >> focusing on how to best serve a community. There are two paths, only one >> leads to success in business: >> >> 1) serve an idea >> 2) serve a customer >> >> *Hint: your "idea" will keep asking to borrow money. ;)* >> >> Your "idea" is going to change and morph over time no matter what you do, >> so locking into a specific idea now is setting yourself up for quite a bit >> of headache and heartache down the road. >> >> This also comes down to what your goals are beyond how you divvy up >> space. Studio rental tends to become a fairly thankless and transactional >> business by comparison to a community space, UNLESS you have a plan for >> putting work to the community building work into things, like Angel has >> done with Cohere Bandwidth <http://coherebandwidth.com> by embedding it >> into a bigger local community of arts and creativity. Making a studio a >> part of a bigger creative ecosystem, either locally or online, can help you >> create a MUCH more resilient model. >> >> It also puts you in a position to know who the community that uses it is, >> and thus having a much better sense of how to structure your memberships >> <http://dangerouslyawesome.com/2015/10/the-ultimate-guide-to-structuring-your-coworking-space-memberships/> >> to cover costs and even fund the opening >> <http://dangerouslyawesome.com/2011/09/how-to-fund-your-coworking-space/> in >> the first place. >> >> Do you want to be in the business of renting space? Or do you want to be >> surrounded by creative people? They're not exactly mutually exclusive, but >> the direction your personal priorities lean should color this decision. >> >> -Alex >> >> >> ------------------ >> *The #1 mistake in community building is doing it by yourself.* >> Join the list: http://coworkingweekly.com >> Listen to the podcast: http://dangerouslyawesome.com/podcast >> >> On Tue, Oct 13, 2015 at 10:15 AM, Geoffrey Badner <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >>> Alex & Katherine, >>> Thanks for your replies. >>> >>> Option #2 "feels" better to me because that was my original idea. After >>> looking for ways to fund the space (at NYC rents) the coworking space came >>> into the picture. I've worked in several coworking spaces in NYC and always >>> felt they were lacking in ways that I could improve on. >>> >>> That issue aside, your comments echo those of others who have seen the >>> space I'm considering. They seem to feel that, even with having the two >>> spaces well separated and insulated for sound, having people shooting in >>> the studio will disrupt the coworking space. Also, having people in the >>> studio worry about annoying the people in the office areas would bring an >>> an unappealing worry to the creative space. >>> >>> I think I'll probably end up with something similar to these >>> membership-based shoot studios: >>> http://westststudios.com >>> http://studioslic.com (I'm currently a member here) >>> >>> Just not confident I can afford to do this in the space I want. >>> >>> Thanks! >>> ~ Geoffrey >>> >>> >>> On Monday, October 12, 2015 at 12:58:03 PM UTC-4, Geoffrey Badner wrote: >>>> >>>> Hello. First post here :) >>>> >>>> I'm a photographer from Brooklyn, NY and I'm interested in opening a >>>> shared creative space for others in the photo business – photographers, >>>> hair/makeup, stylists, etc. I've located an excellent 7,000 sq. ft space >>>> and have done a couple of layout plans that map back to two different >>>> business models. >>>> >>>> *1: Shared Desks + Studio* >>>> This idea cuts the space into 2/3rds hot desks, permanent desks and a >>>> couple of offices with 1/3 remaining for a single large studio space. This >>>> allows for daily drop ins, month to month desk and a couple closed office >>>> rentals and is designed to provide a steadier cash flow for the space while >>>> also providing a very nice shoot space. >>>> >>>> *2: Three Studios* >>>> This idea removes all of the desks and offices and uses almost the >>>> entire floor for three studio spaces (plus a nice common area with couches >>>> and a conference room). This is more what I feel like I want to do, but it >>>> relies completely on community members booking the studios regularly to >>>> support the community. To do this, I have to charge a higher monthly price >>>> point for even the lowest tier. >>>> >>>> I'm wondering... is option 2 just too much of a niche? Option 1 seems >>>> like the smarter business decision, but I really like the concept of 2. >>>> >>>> Thanks for your thoughts! >>>> >>> -- >>> Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com >>> --- >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>> Groups "Coworking" group. >>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>> an email to [email protected]. >>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >>> >> >> -- > Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Coworking" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected] > <javascript:_e(%7B%7D,'cvml','coworking%[email protected]');> > . > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- ------------------ *The #1 mistake in community building is doing it by yourself.* Join the list: http://coworkingweekly.com Listen to the podcast: http://dangerouslyawesome.com/podcast -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
